scorch

[ skawrch ]

verb (used with object)

1. to affect the color, taste, etc., of by burning slightly:

   The collar of the shirt was yellow where the iron had scorched it.

   Synonyms: blister, char

2. to parch or shrivel with heat:

   The sun scorched the grass.

3. to criticize severely.

   Synonyms: condemn, excoriate

   Antonyms: laud

4. Machinery. burn ¹( def 32 ).
5. to destroy (crops, towns, etc.) by or as if by fire in the path of an invading army's advance.

verb (used without object)

1. to become scorched:

   Milk scorches easily.

2. Informal. to travel or drive at high speed:

   The car scorched along the highway.

noun

1. a superficial burn.

scorch

/ skɔːtʃ /

verb

1. to burn or become burnt, so as to affect the colour, taste, etc, or to cause or feel pain
2. to wither or parch or cause to wither from exposure to heat
3. informal.
   intr to be very hot

   it is scorching outside

4. informal.
   tr to criticize harshly
5. slang.
   intr to drive or ride very fast

noun

1. a slight burn
2. a mark caused by the application of too great heat
3. horticulture a mark or series of marks on fruit, vegetables, etc, caused by pests or insecticides

Derived Forms

• ˈscorching, adjective

Other Words From

• un·scorched adjective
• well-scorched adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of scorch¹

1400–50; late Middle English scorchen, perhaps blend of scorcnen (< Scandinavian; compare Old Norse skorpna to shrivel) and torch ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of scorch¹

C15: probably from Old Norse skorpna to shrivel up

Synonym Study

See burn ¹.

Example Sentences

Instead, the planet has likely been a scorching, inhospitable world for its entire history.

From Science Daily

"Her body was scorched where her clothes would have been."

From BBC

Now, my collection of action figures has been pushed into the scorching attic.

From Salon

Day laborers sort red chilies that have been dried in the scorching sunshine of India’s Andhra Pradesh state.

From Science Magazine

The Mountain Fire had scorched some of the fruit, leaving it shriveled or in ashes.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• bake
• blacken
• char
• melt
• parch
• sear